Principles and Operational Applications of Geostationary Lightning Mapper Data for Severe Local Storms

The launch of the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (R-Series: GOES-16 and GOES-17) provides a new opportunity to investigate and better understand lightning trends and signatures of severe local storms across a variety of landscapes and meteorological conditions. The Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM) provides continuous geostationary coverage and measurement of lightning activity across and beyond the contiguous United States that was previously unavailable from space-based instruments. Lightning data, in particular lightning data that includes in-cloud and total lightning detection, has promise in the use of storm interrogation and prediction due the inherent connection between storm electrification and updraft processes. This presentation will review what the GLM provides, compare it to ground-based lightning detections, and provide context relative to other satellite and radar data for operational use and applications. Feedback and examples from the GOES-R Proving Ground in the Hazardous Weather Testbed showing the integration of products including Flash Extent Density, Flash Size, and Optical Energy into the storm interrogation and warning process will be included. Additionally, we will share the results of calibration and validation work from GLM Science Team to clarify the limitations and feasibility of the data in future severe storms research, data assimilation, and forecasting.